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This week, in author Willie Carver, Jr.’s new book, he reconsiders a negative childhood experience with a neighborhood girl who might have just been looking for a friend. Also, a southwestern Virginia community rang the alarm after more and more of its children were diagnosed with cancer. A local journalist is trying to unravel the cause. And, the city of Asheville has a new crusading reporter. He’s a puppet.
Transportation Officials Send Water Tank Over 200 Miles To Help Tucker County Amid Drought
The West Virginia Department of Transportation shipped a water tank more than 220 miles from Huntington to Tucker County.West Virginia Department of Transportation
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As a prolonged drought continues to threaten farms across West Virginia, state officials are getting creative to ensure that communities have enough water for the summer season.
This week, that meant supplying the Tucker County town of Thomas with a 5,000 gallon tank of non-potable water from Huntington — transporting it roughly 220 miles out of a city experiencing less severe conditions.
The West Virginia Department of Transportation (WVDOT) announced the completion of the effort on Friday, and said it came in response to Gov. Jim Justice’s July 26 state of emergency declaration over the drought for all 55 counties.
The United States Drought Monitor has classified the current dry spell in Thomas as an “extreme drought.” Tucker County is part of the eastern region of the state that has been hardest hit by the drought conditions.
Counties in the easternmost region of West Virginia have been hit hardest by an ongoing drought this summer.
Map Credit: United States Drought Monitor
High levels of iron in the town’s water supply have rendered current non-drinking water resources unusable, Thomas Mayor Jody Flanagan said in the Friday press release.
“This is the lowest our dam and reservoir have been in 60 years,” Flanagan said.
The water tank was trucked to Thomas by drivers from Charleston, and was placed at the town’s fire department for community access to use for washing, flushing toilets, etc., according to a Friday WVDOT press release. City officials have secured drinking water for to town through other sources. A representative for the City of Thomas confirmed that the city received the tank by Thursday afternoon.
“This demonstrates the teamwork and determination of the WVDOH employees across the state to serve our citizens,” said Secretary of Transportation Jimmy Wriston in the press release.
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On this West Virginia Week, the state signs a memorandum of understanding about nuclear energy, the Public Service Commission disputes need for a transmission line, and 9/11 is remembered.
A staff engineer testified that there is little evidence of the project’s benefit to West Virginians and the most likely outcome of the MARL project not being built is the energizing of fewer data centers in Virginia.
Economic growth in West Virginia ranks close to the bottom in national rankings. It’s not just losing jobs, it’s also losing young people. In the first of two new Us & Them episodes, host Trey Kay talks with several young adults from the Mountain State asking whether they will stay put or find their future elsewhere.
